A shattered heart felt no pain, only despair and coldness. Boruto stared at Himawari with vacant eyes, muttering through a blood-filled mouth: "Himawari…"
"Villain who hurt Mom! Just die already!"
The heartbroken Himawari screamed, thrusting the kunai two centimeters deeper into Boruto's heart with all her strength, completely destroying it.
"I'm your brother! I'm…"
Boruto pleaded in agony, unable to comprehend why Himawari, his sweetest little sister, didn't recognize him.
"You're not my brother! You're the evil person who killed Dad!"
Himawari yanked out the kunai, condemning him with fear but stubborn resolve, utterly failing to recognize the Boruto before her.
"I… you…"
"Cough…"
Boruto spat out another gush of blood. The double blow to his body and mind, along with his devastation, caused his life to fade rapidly.
His eyes lost focus and light, as if all his strength had been drained, leaving only boundless despair and pain. He lowered his head and passed out.
"Boruto!!"
"Boruto!!!"
Sumire and Sarada screamed in anguish simultaneously, their hearts feeling as if they were being torn apart.
The unexpected tragedy that befell Hinata was already unbearable, let alone witnessing Boruto's death at Himawari's hands.
For Boruto, this scene was nothing short of hell.
For Sumire and Sarada, it was as maddening and painful as a nightmare.
In that moment, an overwhelming surge of emotion stimulated Sarada's nerves and consciousness, instantly breaking through the Uchiha bloodline's limits. A brighter blood-red pattern emerged in her eyes.
Mangekyo Sharingan!
Unfortunately, the immense power and intense stimulation of the Mangekyo Sharingan were too much for the 12-year-old Sarada. The overwhelming mental strain instantly disrupted her consciousness, causing her to faint moments after activating her eyes.
Seeing Boruto's death, Sumire grew even more desperate and rushed forward. She ignored Mitsuki's attacks, letting him injure her.
Mitsuki wouldn't kill Sumire. He redirected his Ninjutsu attack to bypass her. After all, Boruto was already dead, so letting her pass didn't matter.
Boruto's death made Mitsuki, whose memories were distorted, cheer in triumph! Yet, within that joy was an indescribable bitterness and confusion, as if a vital piece of his heart had suddenly been severed.
(What's going on? Shouldn't I be happy that Otsutsuki Boruto is dead?)
(Tears? I'm crying?)
(How is that possible? Didn't Father say I lack these emotions? How could I cry?)
(Is it because of Otsutsuki Boruto's death?)
(No, I'm grieving for Lady Hinata's sacrifice! I'm rejoicing over Otsutsuki Boruto's death!)
(It must be like that!)
Mitsuki touched the inexplicable tears streaming down his face, desperately trying to justify and console himself.
To reinforce his conviction, he prepared to approach and deliver two more slashes to the corpse of his enemy, Otsutsuki Boruto—better yet, to cleave his head in two!
His father taught him that only by completely destroying an enemy's head could one maximally prevent them from faking death and reviving.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
A dimensional portal opened, and Six Paths Sasuke arrived at the hospital with Kawaki. But the chaos before him far exceeded his expectations.
The wrecked hospital room, blood everywhere, Hinata's tragic death, a terrified Himawari, an unconscious Sarada, Sumire grieving while holding Boruto's body, and a confused yet enraged Mitsuki…
This scene nearly made Sasuke's super brain overheat.
He had suspected Boruto might be in danger, but he didn't expect the tragedy to unfold so quickly!
Less than a minute had passed since everyone's memories were mass-manipulated, and Sasuke had immediately teleported using a dimensional portal. Yet, on Boruto's side, a tragedy like this had already occurred.
There was no time to grieve. Sasuke sent out a clone to check on Sarada's condition while his real body approached Himawari nearby, trying to ask about the situation.
"Himawari, what happened here?…"
"Ah! Evil Otsutsuki Sasuke…" The poor Himawari fainted from fear.
Of course, it was largely due to the earlier shock pushing her to her mental limit. Now, with a big evil boss suddenly appearing, it was natural she'd be terrified.
With no other choice, Sasuke turned his gaze to the others.
"Otsutsuki Sasuke! I'll kill you!"
Mitsuki, spotting the enemy, erupted in fury, attacking Sasuke fearlessly.
Of course, Mitsuki wasn't foolish. He knew he couldn't defeat Sasuke, so his anger and attack were a feint—he only wanted to seize the chance to save Himawari and Sumire.
Lady Hinata was gone; he couldn't let Himawari and Sumire fall into enemy hands too!
Unfortunately, even his father was no match for Sasuke, let alone him, an immature snake hatchling.
"Bansho Ten'in!"
Sasuke used Bansho Ten'in to pull Mitsuki closer, deploying Gudōdama to shatter all of Mitsuki's Ninjutsu, then grabbing him with one hand.
He could tell Mitsuki's memories had also been manipulated by the enemy, so words alone wouldn't work. He had to be a bit rougher.
Then, activating his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and genjutsu, Sasuke instantly subdued Mitsuki.
Soon after, Sasuke learned everything that had just happened from Mitsuki. He discovered that Mitsuki and Hinata, with manipulated memories, had successively attacked Boruto. Despite Sumire and Sarada's desperate efforts to stop them, they couldn't prevent the tragedy…
Omnipotence was too insane!
It must be noted that Kotoamatsukami, which could only permanently manipulate one person's memories, was already considered the strongest genjutsu. A mad Divine Technique like this, capable of instantly manipulating everyone's memories worldwide, was beyond comprehension!
Moreover, Boruto himself was controlled by Momoshiki, leading to the horrific tragedy of "Boruto killing his mother" and "Himawari killing her brother."
(I was still too late!)
Sasuke sighed, his face full of pain, looking at the bodies of Hinata and Boruto before him, his heart aching with regret.
After all, no one understood better than Sasuke how much these two meant to Naruto. In a single day, Naruto's most important wife and son were gone—how would he explain this to Naruto later?
It must be remembered that a wound to Naruto was a wound to Sasuke's heart. Moreover, Sasuke had trained Boruto, treating his student like half a son, forming an emotional bond. Seeing Boruto die suddenly, it was only natural his heart ached.
"Impossible! It can't be!"
"Boruto, wake up! You can't be gone!"
"Please, wake up quickly!"
"Boruto!—"
Sumire, holding the lifeless Boruto, called out and pleaded hysterically. She frantically tried to close Boruto's wounds, like an innocent fawn losing its mate, fragile and pitiful.
Unfortunately, a severe injury like a destroyed heart couldn't be healed even by medical jutsu, and Sumire, not a medical ninja, was utterly powerless. Yet, for Sumire, watching Boruto die before her was too painful.
After all, as a remnant of Root, Sumire had lived for her father's revenge plan since birth until Boruto saved her from hatred, granting her a new life. Boruto naturally became Sumire's hope and light!
For Sumire now, Boruto was almost her most important kin.
Boruto had many flaws, but the warm, kind nature inherited from his father, Naruto, never changed, and that was why he was increasingly recognized by others. Sumire was one of the key comrades Boruto had saved.
Sasuke looked at the sobbing Sumire, unsure how to console her. He could only release Mitsuki, walk to Sumire's side, and, mimicking Naruto, pat the poor girl's head.
"Sasuke-sama? Boruto, Boruto, he…" Sumire, as if seeing a savior, hurriedly pleaded with Sasuke.
Sasuke sighed helplessly. With his Six Paths Yang power, he could quickly heal wounds, but he clearly couldn't reverse death. If he had arrived a few seconds earlier, even if Boruto's head had been severed, he could've ensured Boruto didn't die!
"WAAA!"
Sumire, rejected by Sasuke, fell into an abyss of despair, crying helplessly in pain. It hurt too much! So much she couldn't breathe…
But then, a faint heartbeat suddenly reached Sasuke's ears. He turned quickly. He only now noticed that, somehow, the wound on Boruto's chest had fully regenerated and healed, even his shattered heart restored to normal. Stimulated by chakra, Boruto's heart was revived, injecting life force!
"This? The power of Kama…?"
"Could it be…?" Sasuke marveled, instantly understanding the reason for Boruto's change.
Boruto awoke like a drowning person revived, taking a long breath, as if waking from a nightmare.
"Class rep? Sensei?…"
"What happened to me?…"
The dazed and confused Boruto looked around, seeing Sumire, Sasuke beside him, and then suddenly the body of his mother to his left.
Boruto's pupils shrank sharply, a flood of horrific memories crashing over him.
"That's right, I killed Mom! I'm not human…"
"AAAAAAAAH!"
"I deserve to die!"
"Sensei! Kill me! Please kill me!…"
Boruto, recalling the truth, felt unbearable pain in his heart again. He didn't want to stay in this horrific reality for even a second longer. He only begged his teacher to kill him, to atone for his mother and escape this hellish nightmare!